As 18-year-old Bryce Balanuik stood onstage at the Chinese consulate in Vancouver last month, his nerves were evident as he looked down repeatedly at the speech he had prepared and memorized well before the event. But when it came to what drove him to learn Chinese, his storytelling — in Mandarin, no less — was clear: "Next year, I'll be going off to university. I want to go into business and do business with China. [Speaking the language] brings me happiness, and it allows me to meet friends and be more successful in my career."